The invention relates to an axial roller bearing including two ball races between which roller bodies guided in a roller body cage are arranged, and the axial roller bearing is enclosed on the outside by a sealing arrangement for sealing a roller body space.
Axial roller bearings that are also called longitudinal or compression bearings take on forces in the longitudinal direction of the shaft or axle and are known in many different embodiments. In motor vehicle wheel suspension systems, typically axle journals are used to attach steerable wheels to an axle body of the chassis in a pivoting manner. The connection between the axle journal and the axle body is realized by an axle journal pin that is inserted into corresponding holes of the axle journal and the axle body. Axial forces between the axle journal and the axle body are transmitted via an axial roller bearing mounted on the axle journal pin. An effective seal is required over the service life of the axial roller bearing and for the axial roller bearing to function. This seal prevents, on one side, a discharge of lubricant out of the bearing and, on the other side, the penetration of contaminants into the axial roller bearing. This seal is provided, in particular, for axial journal bearings in which the lubricant remains permanently in the bearing without the need for relubrication. Relubrication could also be provided for axial journal bearings, wherein the bearing is filled with lubricant until there is visible discharge in the area of the seal.
DE 21 02 656 A shows the use of an axial roller bearing in an axle journal bearing of a vehicle axle. An axle body is here supported by means of an axial roller bearing on a lower mount of the fork-shaped end of an axle journal and enables rotation of the axle journal. The upper ball race of the axial roller bearing is arranged in a pot-shaped housing whose sleeve-shaped edge surrounds the lateral surface of the lower washer with clearance. Between an inclined face of the lower ball race and the end face of the lower mount of the fork-shaped end of an axle journal forming the contact face for the lower ball race, a sealing ring with a bead-shaped section is fixed in place. An elastic ring part extends starting from the bead into the space between the sleeve-shaped part and the circumferential surface of the ball race. At the same time, the roller body space or the bearing interior of the axial roller bearing is sealed by the elastic ring part.